also by tracypaper12
"Welcome to your new home," Fozaibae said emotionlessly,
"I hope you like it here, because you are never leaving." He stepped away from
the group of Neopets, a Faerie Ixi trotting faithfully by his side. He looked
about sixteen years of age, and was wearing a sand-coloured waistcoat, and loosely
fitting pants.
"Sazbae!" Buffy blurted out. Fozaibae laughed,
a cruel, menacing laugh.
"Ah, so you know my Ixi already?" he said, his
deep voice penetrating through Buffy like a dagger.
"I think we've met," Buffy muttered. Sazbae stood
silently, her eyes sharp and fierce. Buffy waited, daring for Sazbae to speak.
"Good thief pets should be seen and not heard,"
Fozaibae replied, as if he had read Buffy's mind. Lapinnie was thinking.
"So," the Aisha said, darkness covering her face,
as her head face downward. "You were the one who told them about the
hidden jewels at our school, didn't you, Sazbae -- or Princess, rather?
You're the one who lied, just to get us captured and --"
Fozaibae roared, "ENOUGH!"
"It's okay," Sazbae insisted, hiding her smirk.
"Well, I have to be going now. My friends are waiting for me back at home, and
I can't wait until Monica sees what I got her for tonight's events,"
the Ixi added.
Buffy's ears drooped helplessly, cursing under
her breath and her mouth a frown, as the Ixi scurried off into the bright hall
and disappeared.
***
Monica sneaked down the steps of the staircase cautiously, the clock ticking
and interrupting the deathly silence. Her heart beating quickly, the Ixi made
her way through most of the house and swung her bag from her paws to her back.
Lucy's voice rang out from the repetitive clicking of the clock.
"Where are you going, Monica?" she inquired,
getting up from the couch she was seated on.
"Nowhere," Monica growled, unhappy with the foul
break of her plan.
Her Krawk sister looked at her and said, "Nowhere?
Then shouldn't you be in your bed? Everyone has a destination, especially if
you get up from bed in the middle of the night and sneaking down here like that."
"Just for a little midnight stroll, that's all,"
Monica said, her irritation easily heard.
"With that wretch, Sazbae?"
"Look, it's none of your business!" Monica nearly
yelled, but caught herself before she did. Tracy could be heard snoring loudly
from upstairs in her bedroom, as she did not know what was happening, before
the room became quiet again.
"Isn't it?" Lucy asked. "Look, Monica. Sazbae
is nothing but... Sazbae -- don't listen to her. She's just ruining the family
relationship, and she's possibly quite sneaky." Monica was about to interrupt,
but the Krawk continued, "I'm not telling you to stop being friends with her
or anything. That part's just your choice. But just be careful out there, okay?"
"Look, I know what I'm doing!" Monica hissed,
"I'd prefer it if you'd keep you're snout out of this!" Lucy shot Monica a look
of pure venom, before retreating up the stairs.
"Finally," Monica said to herself, "I thought
she'd never leave!" She quietly slipped out the door, and out into the darkness.
***
Meanwhile, Buffy and Lapinnie were being guided around the Thieves' Guild headquarters,
by a rather fierce looking Grarrl.
"This is the training centre," he said, pointing
into a dark room. "Training starts at five in the mornings, and ends at eight
in the evening." Lapinnie shuddered; five am wasn't her ideal time to wake up
every morning, especially in an unfamiliar place like this.
"Once you've gone through our rigorous training
course, you'll be allowed to officially go out and reap rewards for the guild.
"You mean steal," Lapinnie said bluntly.
"Whatever floats your boat," the Grarrl said
casually. "You'll be sleeping here with the other Thieves in Training. Go pick
your sleeping quarters." Several hammocks hung from poles across the room. Less
than half were occupied.
"They can't do this to us!" Lapinnie whispered
loudly. Buffy shook her head.
"Well they have, and until our owners figure
out..."
"What if our owners DON'T figure it out?" Lapinnie
said angrily.
"Don't shout at me!" Buffy roared, "It's not
my fault we're in this situation!"
"Yeah, it's mine!" Lapinnie shouted back.
"Well, actually, it is!"
"Fine!"
"Fine!"
Buffy took a hammock on the far left of the room,
and Lapinnie took one on the far right. Buffy stared out of a window next to
her. The stars shone brightly, blurred as Buffy's eyes prickled with tears.
A painful thought struck Buffy. For the first time in her life, she felt alone,
lost, and helpless. Closing her eyes tight, she forced herself to sleep.
Meanwhile, Lapinnie, who chose a hammock quite
far away from Buffy, sighed. Hot anger rose inside of her, uncontrollable. She
wanted it to stop, she didn't want to be angry and didn't know why she was acting
this way. What happened to the old her -- the Aisha that never got angry no
matter what happened? When she hardly showed any personality, hatred, or sadness
behind that smiling face of hers... tears streamed down her cheeks, as she wiped
them furiously away.
She wondered if her owner, Lapin, had ever suffered
this troubling anger. Perhaps it was just something that would go away through
time. Lapinnie shook her head. Nothing could go away just like that, she had
to act. The Aisha moved to a hammock closer to Buffy, her heart throbbing painfully.
She did not sleep that night.
***
"What am I supposed to do again?" asked Monica, clutching onto her bag.
"Just go up there and see what I found," Sazbae
said, climbing up the steep hill beside Monica.
"What's --" Monica paused her speech, staring
at the object that lay on the top of the hill. In front of her stood a majestic
Faerie Ixi carved in precious stone, the light of the moon shining and reflecting
from it. It glistened in the night, the delicate details of the figurine standing
out before them. The wings were unfolded and free, the Faerie Ixi's expression
full of happiness and glee. "Oh Fyora... it's the most beautiful thing I've
ever seen!"
"Yeah," Sazbae said proudly, "and you can come
to my place and take a look at it anytime if you want."
Monica's heart sank, and said bluntly, "Oh,"
for she had though it was for her.
"What's the matter?"
"Nothing."
"Are you sad about your deformed sister running
away?" asked Sazbae rather rudely.
Monica remembered hearing no noise in Buffy's
room, and when she went inside for some items, she was not in there. She had
not told anyone, because she hardly cared at the time. "No, but --"
"That's good. She's always sulky and stuff
anyway, so it's about time she ran off. She's probably crying her head off this
very minute." Before Monica could interrupt, Sazbae continued, "That Aisha friend
of hers, she's always so happy and stuff. I mean, what in Neopia, right? At
some point I bet you she's going to explode her little smiling head off and
she won't have a proper owner to run too. Not like Buffy though, she gets an
owner who spoils her. That owner's more dull than an overused spoon, for Fyora's
sake and --"
"Be quiet," Monica spat defensively. "You can
talk about me or Buffy or anyone else, but don't you talk about Tracy like that!"
"Sheesh, why is everyone so tense these days?"
she said coldly, "I was only messing with you". Monica let out a forced, nervous
laugh. It was a cold night, and she was pretty sure they weren't supposed to
be doing this.
"Maybe we should head back," Monica said, her
voice shaking, "it's kinda late."
"Do you want to know the real reason we're here?"
Sazbae said casually, fumbling around in her bag. She handed Monica a letter.
"See you soon," Sazbae said, slinking off into
the shadows, "good night."
Monica tore back the top of the envelope, her
hooves shaking. She carefully slid it's contents out, and unfolded them. Monica
read the message slowly.
''SAZBAE INVITES YOU TO JOIN 'THE GUILD OF THIEVES'.
MEET US AT THE ABANDONED WAREHOUSE (THE GUILD HEADQUARTERS) ON FRIDAY, AT 12
NST." At the bottom, Sazbae had scrawled an afterthought, in her pointed, scratchy
handwriting.
"We're like one big family." Family was underlined
several times.
Monica stared at the letter in horror, for what
seemed an eternity. Her best friend was a thief. That's why she had the best
items and was painted Faerie. That's why Monica had never seen her owner. Everything
was clicking in place. Suddenly, a hand tapped her on the shoulder.
"Excuse me?" the voice said. Monica spun round.
A police Chia was standing there, smiling at her.
"Now, what would a pretty little thing like you
be doing out at this time?" he said sarcastically. Monica hastily shoved the
letter in her bag, and began to run.
"Hey, wait!" he cried, but Monica had already
sped away.
To be continued...
| 
